As we go through our lives, many of us spend the years hoping and trying to “become” something, whether that thing is wealthy, beautiful, strong, or successful. We think that these achievements define us, that once we meet these goals, we’ll be who we’re meant to be. But the truth is, we’re already who we’re meant to be, deep inside – and the only thing we have to become in this life is our real, true selves.

For decades, I allowed my life to be all about work. The path I took was the one straight up the corporate ladder, but in my heart I knew my life was meant to go in a more meaningful direction. And until I found the courage to leave my job and make room for change, I wasn’t ready to follow my own truth of becoming real…or finding real love. I wasn’t ready to accept the call of helping others to heal and learn to get in touch with their own intuition. I wasn’t ready to write my book, and share my story with the world.

Once upon a time I had a vision, a burning desire to spread the message of the love that I found in my own little ordinary way, by sharing my personal miracles. These are things that actually happened to me: Nothing is made up; there is no fiction here. I’ve received so many signs of divine providence in my life, and I’m committed to helping others recognize these signs in their own lives, too. This blog is my starting place.

We all have a starting place, a moment that moves us to begin our own journeys of transformation. Sometimes, these moments are painful – but we’re rewarded with a love we never dreamed possible.

On his website, Dial Hope, the Reverend Joe Albright posted the following excerpt from the classic story of “The Velveteen Rabbit” by Margery Williams that speaks to this journey:

“Real isn’t how you are made,’ said the Skin Horse. ‘It’s a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.’
‘Does it hurt?’ asked the Rabbit.
‘Sometimes,’ said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. ‘When you are Real you don’t mind being hurt.’
‘Does it happen all at once, like being wound up,’ he asked, ‘or bit by bit?’

‘It doesn’t happen all at once,’ said the Skin Horse. ‘You become. It takes a long time. That’s why it doesn’t happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”

It’s true: By the time we become real, we might seem, in some ways, a little worse for wear. But as the story says, that doesn’t matter. What matters is that at last, we are finally alive. Through connecting to the divine love in all things, we open ourselves to the abundance of the universe. And the universe will always find ways to speak to us. We just need to learn how to listen.

When I'm not certain about something, and I take the time to ponder the circumstances, I realize if I truly trust my intuition I either know or I don't know. If the answer is I know, then why not take action?